Shell and Vessel Scanning Service

In-Depth Inspection Of Large Surfaces

Assets like storage tanks and pressure vessels are exposed to a wide range of potential damage mechanisms, any of which may result in the asset’s failure if not identified and mitigated at the right time. Depending on the nature and the volume of the contained product, failure may lead not only to product loss and a halt in operations, but also to severe and long-term environmental contamination. Therefore, the public pressure on operators to ensure the integrity of their assets is very strong – and failure to comply may entail substantial costs, both direct and indirect.

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Challenge

The leading cause of failure in storage assets is corrosion. Even the smallest reduction in wall thickness can severely harm their integrity. Yet, isolated corrosion on large surfaces like tank shells can be very hard to identify. Currently, inspections of large areas are commonly carried out using only isolated point grids or line-scans. Not only is this method very time-consuming, it is also very unreliable when it comes to detecting small but potentially critical defects.

Key advantages

Fast in-service inspection concept

Full inspection coverage at excellent repeatability

High sensitivity to small defects, both internal and external

Operators get more than systematic samples of their asset’s condition. Instead, they can rely on accurate and detailed information on the status of its entire surface.

Real-time confirmation allows for a quick reaction to any report of critical defects, while a more detailed follow-up will provide an individual basis for an appropriate selection of further services, and ultimately for an eﬀective integrity management strategy

The Solution

ROSEN’s Shell and Vessel Scanning service features an automated system that provides a comprehensive inspection of large areas. The extremely dependable EMAT technology delivers high-resolution scans of the entire wall area of large storage assets.

Without the need for scaﬀolding or external power supply, the free-climbing, battery-powered ROSEN crawler accesses and inspects the surfaces of objects such as:

Tank shells

Pressure vessels

Spheres

Bullets

Storage laterals

The ROSEN Shell and Vessel Scanning service can be performed externally as well as internally. On the one hand, this avoids that assets must be taken out of service for an inspection. On the other hand, it permits the inspection of insulated or underground assets.

Online data analysis and feature identification allow for a real-time confirmation of detected wall loss indications. After the inspection, large amounts of raw EMAT data are stored and processed, and the results are summarized in a clear and informative report. Data visualization provides an overview of defect positions and severity.

The ROSEN Shell and Vessel Scanning service is available as a stand-alone service or in combination with API 510 & 653 inspections.